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Marcye Scott has entered the race to fill her late father David Scott’s congressional seat in Georgia, turning grief into an inspired political pivot. The news was shared in a hopeful, spontaneous moment during Scott’s celebration of life ceremony at Elizabeth Baptist Church in Atlanta.
Marcye was encouraged to share her decision by the family after Gwen Sommers Redwine, a longtime family friend and journalist, asked her to come to the podium.
“Marcy has been working for her father’s campaign and fundraising efforts for over 20 years, and she plans to run in the special election to fill his seat,” Sommers Redwine said. “Marcy, stand up! Stand up! We’re going to get started with your career.”
Her run comes as Gov. Brian Kemp has set a special election for July 28 to choose who will serve the rest of David Scott’s term in Georgia’s 13th District.
“I would love to be able to fill in the gaps for him,” she said. “I’ve got the experience — I can tell you that I know everything about the 13th District, just like him,” Marcye told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
She continued, “I think my father would come back to life and kick my butt if I didn’t.”
Longtime Democrat David Scott died on April 22 at age 80 after spending nearly five decades in elected office. He made history in 2021 as the first Black lawmaker to chair the House Agriculture Committee, and his former seat is considered one of Georgia’s safest Democratic districts.
Other Democrats are also weighing or entering the contest, including state Representative Jasmine Clark, Gwinnett County School Board member Everton Blair Jr., and state Senator Emanuel Jones, raising the stakes for a seat that has long been a fixture in Georgia politics.
The special election will be held separately from the regular primary, and candidates interested in the race still must wait for qualifying dates and voter registration deadlines to be released.
“Marcye was with him every step of the way on the campaign trail. She knows this district, so I’m excited to see what she brings with this new energy to the legacy of David Scott,” U.S. Rep. Nakima Williams said to WSB-TV.
SOURCE: bet.com